Shield Hero - Riot Control
by 13en-writes-all
Summary: Following a hostage rescue sistuation, the HERO Brigade earns a one and a half billion dollar a year raise in fundings. The head of the brigade sends their top operatives to oversee the S.W.A.T. teams of the towns surrounding Castletown. Naofumi becomes the Captain of Rock Valley and recruits many others to his team. Rated M for violence, language, and later chapters
1. Hostage Sistuation

**Part 1 – New Job – part 1**

May 2nd, 1998, the Providence of Melromarc: the Mayor of Castletown, Dominic C. Melromarc, the Providence's capitol is assassinated…

June 6th, police crackdown on the criminal body, ordered by the Governor which includes searching homes of known gangbangers and organized crime bosses leads to widespread riots that leaves dozens of innocent bystanders dead.

July 7th, riot units of Castle Towns Special Weapons and Tactics squad opens fire on a group of protestors, eighty one people are killed, mostly unarmed women and children.

July 8th, the President of the State flies in, leading to the end of the police crackdowns, and the Governor's resignation from office.

January 3rd, 2028, the late Mayor's daughter, Mirellia Q Melromarc becomes Governor of Melromarc.

February 8th, 2028, Madame Governor Melromarc signs the Hero's Act into law.

The Act legalizes privatized tactical law enforcement and offers Cash incentives to private firms to set up offices in the capitol.

The Act sparks widespread opposition, primarily from the city's criminal underworld as it means that highly-trained & well-paid mercenaries now had Police Powers.

May 2nd, 2028, STAR Towers, forty stories of pure luxury all wrapped in a reflective glass cover with two additional spires that make the entire building look like some kind of futuristic ship about to take off for the stars.

Five hours prior to midnight, a hold-up on the floor of the Casino resulting in the shooting of a security guard, causing the guests to barricade their rooms.

Negotiations were not going as planned, and the city called in the best to deal with the damages: the HERO Brigade, a small unit made up of highly-trained, highly-skilled, and highly-paid individuals that specialized in all kinds of weapons.

The leader for the team would be Itsuki Kawasumi, his team would consist of Motoyasu Kitamura, Ren Amaki, and Naofumi Iwatani.

Name: Itsuki Kawasumi  
Rank: Sergeant II  
DOB: 05/06/2001  
Height: 5'9  
Prior Experience: LAPD SWAT  
Division: Castletown

Name: Ren Amaki  
Rank: Officer III  
DOB: 06/07/2003  
Height: 5'8  
Prior Experience: F.B.I. Strategic Response  
Division: Castletown

Name: Motoyasu Kitamura  
Rank: Sergeant I  
DOB: 01/24/2004  
Height: 6'2  
Prior Experience: United States Marine Corps  
Division: Castletown

Name: Naofumi Iwatani  
Rank: Sergeant I  
DOB: 06/20/2002  
Height: 6'3  
Prior Experience: United States Army  
Division: Castletown

As the team was preparing their weapons, Itsuki was meeting with the town's Chief of Police.

"Our surveillance has confirmed the presence of two shooters in the pent-house," Chief Michael Jason Oliver said as he pointed at the holographic image of STAR Tower that was set up on the hood of his car, "The V.I.P.s are a well-known billionaire, his former super-model wife, and their three kids," he then pointed at the casino floor, "We count another three in the lobby where most of the hostages are."

"Weapons," Itsuki asked.

"Three rifles, one pump-action confirmed," Chief Oliver said.

"I saw we divide our teams," Itsuki said, "I'll take two of your guys, and we'll hit the penthouse. Meanwhile, my team will simultaneously hit the shooters in the lobby."

"Infiltration," Ren asked.

"The roof," Itsuki said, "We can go in hard and fast through the roof entrance, and me, plus the three others will make our way to the pent-house."

"How are we going to get down to the ground floor," Ren asked.

"What about the elevators," Motoyasu asked, "We could take them all the way to the lobby."

"They'd see us coming a mile away," Ren said.

"What if we used some ascenders," Naofumi asked, "The three of us could stop the elevator half-way down, and descend the rest of the way."

"Good idea," Itsuki said, "Aside from that, I think we're ready."

"Let's move," Chief Oliver said, "How do you need?"

"I need a B&E specialist, and your best shot," Itsuki said.

"I'll send Adam and Philips," Chief Oliver said, "Let's get these guys."

As the team gathered their weapons, they boarded the chopper that would take them up to the top of the tower, and exhaled slowly as the chopper began to climb into the air.

As they were on the way to the top of the building, Naofumi reached into his holster, and pulled out his weapon: a custom Colt 1911A1 with a CC3H grip and rail, beveled mag well, punisher-style compensator, and an extended slide release and stop.

Making sure the action worked, he did a brass-check, seven rounds, plus one in the chamber.

"You ready for this one," Motoyasu asked.

"You know it," Naofumi said as they bumped fists.

"We have one hostile on the roof," the pilot said.

"Shit," Itsuki said before turning to Naofumi, "Naofumi."

"I got him," Naofumi said as he stowed away his pistol, reached behind his shield, and swung around his Barrett MRAD.

As the chopper rose to the roof, the hostile raised his rifle, only for Naofumi to fire first.

The bullet slammed into the center of the man's chest, and dropped him like a stone.

"Nice," Motoyasu said as slapped Naofumi on the shoulder.

"Target down," Naofumi said as he racked the bolt on his MRAD, folded the stock, and swung it around onto his back.

"Land this puppy," Itsuki said.

As the pilot set the chopper down, Naofumi grabbed his shield, and stepped out of the chopper first, being sure to keep his 1911 at the ready.

The rest of the team, and the two SWAT officers jumped onto the roof as the chopper bugged out.

The weapons the SWAT officers were carrying were standard-issue Colt M4s, meanwhile the team carried different weapons.

Motoyasu carried a custom select-fire AR-15 that he fitted a 17-inch spear-point bayonet to that had TEKKO M-LOK rail system and an M21 Reflex Sight.

Itsuki held a Colt LE901 with a Trijicon ACOG sight, vertical foregrip, and a leapers UTG bipod.

Slung to his back was a custom crossbow made of titanium and carbon fiber that fired custom-tip arrows.

Rei carried a Stoner 63 with a MARS sight, and holstered to his back was a United Cutlery Combat Tanto sword.

Itsuki ushered the team forward, proceeding to the stairs: Naofumi on point with his shield extended.

As soon as they reached the bottom of the stairs, Naofumi stopped just before rounding a corner as he heard voices, he peered around the corner, and signaled the team into cover.

"Two contacts, by the door," Naofumi said as he prepared his 1911.

"Right behind you," Motoyasu said.

"One," Naofumi said.

"Two," Motoyasu said.

"Three," they both said as they shot around the corner.

Naofumi kneeling in front of Motoyasu, and both of them opening fire at the same time: the .45 bullet from Naofumi's 1911 hitting the one on the left high in the neck, and the three 5.56 rounds from Motoyasu's AR-15 hitting the one on the right square in the chest.

"Targets down," Naofumi said.

The team moved up to the entrance, Rei and Itsuki entering the building first with their rifles at the ready, "Clear," Itsuki said as he ushered the team inside, "Alright, it's time to split up," he looked over at the team, "Spear, take the team down to the lower levels, and take care of the hostiles in the casino. I'll take SWAT boys here, and take the ones in the pent-house."

The team very quickly proceeded over to the elevator, upon pressing the button, Motoyasu and Ren took cover behind Naofumi's shield.

As the door opened it revealed two armed terrorists who raised their weapons to fire, only to be blinded by a large tactical light mounted to the front of Naofumi's shield, causing them to shield their eyes, and were then hit with a series of taser-charges from the same shield that caused them to drop their weapons.

As the fell forward, Ren and Motoyasu dragged their bodies out of the elevator, and secured their arms behind their backs with premium-metal handcuffs.

"Nice job," Itsuki said as he tapped the terrorists' mouths shut, "You know the drill. Through those elevators, down to the casino."

The team walked into the elevator, and as Motoyasu hit the button that was halfway down to the casino.

Preparing their gear, Motoyasu kept an eye on the floor count. Upon arriving on the floor, he slapped on the _emergency stop_ button, and using his tactical spear opened one of the tiles in the roof, and then popped the hatch open.

"Alright," Naofumi said as he stood beneath the hatch, and cupped his hands together, "Let's go."

Ren stepped into Naofumi's hands, was hoisted up until he could get a grip on the top of the elevator, and pull himself out.

Motoyasu went next, and bent down to give Naofumi a hand as he jumped up.

After being hoisted up onto the roof of the elevator, the three of them pulled out their ascenders.

Hooking onto the cables, they began their decent towards the ground floor.

As the arrived, Naofumi placed two fingers to his throat-mike and spoke, "The elevator has arrived."

"Room service is here," Itsuki said.

"Ready to go," Motoyasu said as he set up the elevator door opening device.

"Standby," Itsuki said as the S.W.A.T. officers prepared the breaching charges, "Standby. Go."

Motoyasu pulled the cord on the opening device which ripped the doors open.

The S.W.A.T. officers detonated the breaching charges which stunned one of the terrorists in front of the door.

Naofumi, Ren, and Motoyasu jumped through the entrance of the elevator, the first shot came from Ren's Stoner 63, dropping the one closest to the stairs like a stone.

Officer Adams, standing next to Itsuki dropped the one standing closest to the billionaire hostage while Officer Philips dropped the one standing closest to the kids.

Itsuki dropped the final one who was holding the wife at gun-point.

Down in the lobby, Ren dropped the one standing in the circle of hostages who screamed with the man's head exploded with blood.

The final terrorist got a clean aim at Naofumi, and fired at him with his Mossberg 590. The pellets struck and were absorbed by Naofumi's shield.

Naofumi released a stingmore charged at him, striking him with over 100 bb-sized rubber balls, causing him to fall backwards.

Naofumi ripped his 1911 out of the holster, and emptied the clip into the terrorist's body.

"All clear," Motoyasu said as he pressed to fingers to his throat mike.

As Naofumi was reloading his pistol, he turned to see a sleeper pulling a compact Glock 43.

"GUN," he shouted as he flipped the slide-release on his 1911, and pasted the sleeper with a .45 round between the eyes, "Now it's clear," he holstered his weapon, and walked up to the hostages to help free them.

_HERO headquarters_…

The head of the HERO Brigade, Elrasla Grilaroc sat behind her desk, looking up at her four A-list soldiers, "By the book, I said. Clean and cut, I said," she said, "You disregard every last one of my instructions, and ignore my request. In doing so you four have secured the biggest funding contract this unit has ever witnessed."

"What," Itsuki asked.

"You saved the hostages without taking a single hostage casualty," Elrasla said, "After their save they were so thankful their wallets flew open for us."

"How much funding have we secured," Motoyasu asked.

"One and a half billion," Elrasla said.

"WHAT," they all yelled.

"You heard us right," Elrasla said as she stood up, and walked around the desk to standing in front of it, "Thanks to you four, we now have enough money to expand all across Melromarc."

"All across," Naofumi asked.

"Yes," Elrasla said, "Right now we are in the middle of setting up all new stations for you to start your own units."

"Our own units," Ren asked.

"That's right," Elrasla said, "Your units will be made up of recruits that you will choose in your own towns."

"What are the districts," Naofumi asked.

"Ren," Elrasla said as she pointed at him, "We believe that the aquatic town of Shieldfreeden would be best for you."

"I will protect it with honor," Ren said.

Elrasla then looked over at Itsuki, "Itsuki, I'm sending you to the city of Siltvelt. The city is very metropolitan, and the recruits there are eager to meet you."

"Me," Motoyasu asked.

"I'm sending you to Zeltable," Elrasla said.

"Hell yes," Motoyasu said, "Football town!"

"I thought you'd might like that," Elrasla said, she then looked at Naofumi, "And finally, our shield. I've lined up a station for you to use in Rock Valley. Right on the sea, great rock climbing, and a very nice mix of small town and big city."

"What about promotions," Motoyasu asked.

"To Lieutenant, all around, effective immediately," Elrasla said before pointing at Naofumi, "Save for you. There's something I'd like to talk to you about," she then pointed at the three other operatives, "The rest of you… OUT! You'll find your uniforms and weapons waiting for you outside in the cars," as Itsuki, Motoyasu, and Ren left, Elrasla said, "Go on, out with it."

Naofumi spoke up, "I assume you have a good reason for not promoting me, and it's not my place to question my superior."

"You're wrong," Elrasla said as she put her hand on Naofumi's shoulder, "It is your place to question me. You know I've done nothing but praise you when you first arrived to the brigade. The reason I'm not promoting you to Lieutenant is because Rock Valley doesn't need a Lieutenant leading its tactical team. It needs a Captain."

_How's that for a first chapter_…


	2. New Station

**Part 2 – New Job – part 2**

"Captain," Naofumi asked.

"Rock Valley is a small town mixed with a very tiny downtown area," Elrasla said as she walked back around to sit behind her desk, "Right now, with the establishment of the Melromarc Military Academy, the town is undergoing an influx of people and a rise in violent crimes. I figure with your background, you could easily restore some order in the town."

"So you're sending me to be the Sheriff of a college town," Naofumi asked.

"In essence," Elrasla said, "But you know what I mean. Right now the town police need a tactical team. If you're not the man to lead that team, I don't know who is."

"I will need to move my things out of my apartment," Naofumi said.

"Already happening," Elrasla said, "We've found an apartment for you in the downtown area of Rock Valley, and have arranged for you to meet the Mayor and Chief of Police for dinner tonight. Your uniform is waiting at the station, and they'll be a press conference tomorrow morning."

"My car," Naofumi asked.

"Downstairs, right where you left it," Elrasla said, "I think however, you might want to take one of our cars there. Rock Valley is four hours away."

"Which means I'm going to get there by dinner time," Naofumi said, "Which means you have a suit for me, right?"

"Yes," Elrasla said, "It's in your cage."

"And my car," Naofumi asked.

"We'll transport it to Rock Valley," Elrasla said, "You'll also have access to the files of the recruits we hope you'll choose for your tactical team."

"Of course," Naofumi said.

"Anything else," Elrasla asked.

"No ma'am," Naofumi said.

"Good," Elrasla said, "Now piss off."

Naofumi walked outside where he smiled a little bit as he walked to the team's old cage-room.

Inside, he saw that the team's cages had been completely cleaned out, save for the tuxedo that was hanging up in his cage, above a duffle bag for the clothes he had on.

The tuxedo was made of black silk, had a double-breasted jacket with no front-pockets, wide, notched lapels, three buttons on the sleeve, a vented back, and an internal red-colored lining. The pants were non-pleated, had a displaced fastening, and diagonal pockets. The shirt was the same color as the lining, while the tie was the same color as the jacket. The shoes were oxford shoes made of black leather, had rounded front stitching, a tan-colored inner lining, and red laces.

The first thing that Naofumi removed was his shirt which had the word 'HERO' in big bold letters with the symbol of the company which was a three-pointed star inside the 'O'.

As he removed his shirt, the female recruit passing by could help but stare: he looked like the chiseled character in an 80s action movie that would have a large car chase, massive explosions, a gigantic shoot-out, and huge stunts that would push the limit of human imagination.

You could, however, see he had been through a few wars: he had a large vertical burn scar running down the left side of his spin on his lower-back, an exit-wound from a bullet on his right shoulder-blade, and a nasty, jagged horizontal scar on his left.

As he was putting on his clothes, Itsuki walked in to see him halfway through tucking in his shirt, "Hey, how you doing," he asked.

"Could you try to be a little more mature," Naofumi asked as he buttoned the pants, and secured the belt.

"So, Rock Valley," Itsuki said, "You being the commander of a tactical team of a college town is the last place we would expect this job would take you."

"Yea," Naofumi asked as he fastened the last button on his shirt, and began working on the tie, "Where did you think this job would take me?"

"Honestly," Itsuki asked, "With your experience in the Army, we all thought you'd end up as the personal bodyguard to the Governor. You're the best operative I've ever led."

"And you're the best operator I've ever been led by," Naofumi said as he sat down to tie his shoes.

"You were an officer," Itsuki said, "I'm glad you're moving onto something else."

"So am I," Naofumi said as he stood up, "Maybe I need to start working in small-town Melromarc."

"I'm glad you think so," Itsuki said as he and Naofumi walked out of the cage room toward the exit.

"Yea," Naofumi said, "Me playing sheriff in a small town with a population of about fifty thousand."

"So, seriously," Itsuki said, "What's up with this fucking suit?"

"They want to have a press conference tomorrow morning," Naofumi said, "Meanwhile, Granny wanted me to have dinner with Rock Valley's Mayor and Chief of Police."

"Seems like an interesting idea," Itsuki said, "You going to be studying the personnel files that Granny will send you?"

"You know it," Naofumi said as they walked outside where the rest of the members of the former team were waiting.

"I didn't know that this was a formal event," Motoyasu said as he walked toward Naofumi who grabbed his hand as it came in.

"It's for when I get there," Naofumi said as they pulled apart.

"Well, this is it, boys," Ren said as he walked up to them with four beers, and passed them around.

The amber-colored bottles were thin at the base, then flared outwards, then back to the same thickness before hollowing out to the neck. The color of the bottle seemed to be very well balanced against the golden-colored foil where the name "Edelweiss" was written in big bold white letters.

"This is it," Naofumi said

"Our last day as Castletown Alpha Team," Ren said, "After this, we move onto bigger and better things. Our own units, our own subordinates, and our own offices."

"No matter how far we go," Naofumi said, "We will still be friends."

"May our friendship never dwindle," Itsuki said.

"May it not change," Ren said.

"And my it not change us," Motoyasu said as he held up his bottle.

"No change," they all said as they cheered their bottles.

The beer had a deep, rich, chocolaty flavor with a slightly hoppy aftertaste and a very nice zesty tang that hit you when it went down the back of Naofumi's throat.

As they finished the bottles, Motoyasu placed his on the ground, smashed it beneath his boot, and Itsuki exclaimed "Opa!"

"Mazel tov," Motoyasu said.

The team gave one last fist-bump before climbing into their Escalades and taking off.

The driver of Naofumi's Escalade was a young man about five foot nine, he wore a HERO Brigade tee-shirt, tactical pants, boots, and he had a 9mm Glock holstered in the door.

"You ready, Captain," the driver asked as he looked around to see Naofumi.

"Yes," Naofumi said as he picked up the dossiers of the trainees Elrasla had sent him.

The first one was of a former U.S. Army MP with a stellar arrest record, but a few blemishes for excessive force.

He dropped the dossier onto the seat next to him and continued.

The next one was an ex-Green Beret who had been accepted an offer made to him by the HERO Brigade in order to pay for his sister's medicine.

Name: Fohl Renaux  
Rank: Recruit I  
DOB: 6/11/2006  
Height: 5'9  
Prior Experience: Green Berets  
Division: None

Naofumi placed the dossier into his lap and went back to the other files.

The next file was of a very attractive woman with long, light brown, almost red hair, and had very light-colored eyes, almost pink. Naofumi had no idea what to call that color.

Name: Raphtalia Tanuki  
Rank: Recruit I  
DOB: 9/27/2005  
Height: 5'7  
Prior Experience: Military Police  
Division: None

"Excuse me," Naofumi said, "How long will it be before we arrive in Rock Valley?"

"Three and a half hours, sir," the driver said.

"Fantastic," Naofumi said.

Naofumi kept looking through the files, selecting two more recruits, before sitting back and falling asleep.

The dream was of his time on deployment in the Philippines during the Second Pilipino Insurrection.

His sniper team consisted of two men, himself and his spotter. The mission: neutralize a high-profile Separatist Officer before the Army began a coordinated attack against several Insurrection strongholds.

His primary weapon: a DSR-1 chambered in .338 Lapua, and his sidearm: a Colt 1911A1.

The jungle they were sent into was dense, lots of brush that they had to push through, and a ton of enemy patrols they had to evade.

They arrived to see their target was patrolling the stronghold that was conveniently out of the way of the advancing U.S. Forces.

One very precise shot, center-mass in the chest: the bullet cuts a hole through the body like a razor. What comes next isn't so precise: the impact from the bullet causes a transfer of force that his chest ruptured multiple internal organs, and broke most of his bones. He was dead before he even hit the ground.

Naofumi was about to dream some more before he heard someone scream, "HEY!"

Naofumi came too to see that it was night and that he was in the downtown heart of some city.

"We're in Rock Valley," Naofumi asked.

"Yes, sir," the driver said as he pointed to the restaurant across the street, "There's your stop."

"Thanks," Naofumi said as he stepped out.

As Naofumi crossed the street, he could see many girls looking at him, probably because they thought he was handsome, but he wondered if many of them were just looking at his suit.

As he entered, the restaurant, he saw that there was a very high-class atmosphere throughout the joint: men in suits, women in dresses, and bottles of wine all along the walls.

The floors were obviously made of a dark hickory wood while the ceiling was lined with some kind of reflective, mirror-like material that had waves in it that distorted the image like the sliding door of a shower.

"Excuse me, sir," the hostess said as she looked up at Naofumi, "Can I help you?"

"Yes," Naofumi said, "Party for the Mayor?"

"Mr. Iwatani," the hostess asked as she found the name on the list.

"Yes," Naofumi said as he pulled out his wallet, to show his I.D.

"This way, please," the hostess said.

The hostess led Naofumi to a booth in the back where two men sat.

The man on the left was tall, and he had a very outrageous beard that formed several spikes, the color was well on par with most clouds.

The man on the left was of a similar height, bald as a newborn mouse, and had multiple scars on his face.

"Mr. Mayor," Naofumi asked as he walked up to him.

"Mr. Iwatani," the man with the large beard asked as he stood up, and extended his hand.

"Pleasure," Naofumi said as he shook the man's hand.

"Allow me to introduce you," the mayor said as he pointed at his guest, "This is, Erhard Lindberg. Our Chief of Police."

"An honor, sir," Naofumi said as the three of them sat down.

"Allow me to say what an honor it is to have such a prestigious company like the Hero Brigade in a town like ours," the mayor said.

"We're happy you allowed us," Naofumi said before turning to Erhard, "And I would like to say, sir. I am very glad you didn't oppose this transition."

"It's in everyone's best interest," Erhard said, "You've had quite an impressive record with the Brigade. It actually said you were Army, but I couldn't find most of your records."

"There's not a lot about those records," Naofumi said as the waitress came over with three menus, "I've had a pretty boring career."

"It says you tried out for Ranger School, but the remainder of those records are pretty cookie-cutter Army record," Erhard said, "I take it you didn't make the cut?"

"I'll leave that up to your interpretation," Naofumi said as he looked at the menu, "If you don't mind gentlemen, I'll handle the drink selection."

"Excuse me, gentlemen," the waitress said as she walked up to them, "What can I get for you?"

She was dressed very extravagantly: black high heels with black stockings, a black pencil skirt that went just above her knees, a white button-up shirt, and a black, silk vest.

"I'll have the grilled swordfish," the mayor said, "I'd like that with the lemon-butter sauce."

"Could I take the braised lamb shank with the garlic risotto," Erhard asked.

"The filet in the burgundy sauce," Naofumi said, "And bring us some Grand Cru Geralde."

"Feeling generous aren't we," the waitress asked before turning back to the mayor, "Mayor Tanuki, always a pleasure."

Naofumi looked over at the mayor, Tanuki was the same name as one of the recruits he approved.

"So, Mayor Tanuki," Naofumi said, "You married?"

"Yes," Mayor Tanuki said, "I actually have a daughter that just recently joined the HERO Brigade. I tried to talk her out of it, but with my wife's medical bills due to her cancer, she couldn't resist."

_How's that, better detail_…


	3. I Hired the Mayor's Daughter

**Part 3 – I Hired the Mayor's Daughter!**

"I think you'll be surprised," Naofumi said as the waitress brought the bottle to the table along with three glasses.

"Here's your wine, gentlemen," she said as she went into her pocket, staked the cork, and pulled it out with a very satisfying 'pop'.

As she poured the wine, Erhard held up his glass, "Well," he said, "Here's to a lasting partnership between our town and the Brigade."

"Here, here," Naofumi said.

As the three of them cheered their glasses, the very satisfying 'clink' from their glasses would set the tone for the rest of the evening.

"You sure know your wine," Mayor Tanuki said as he placed his glass down.

"So, Mr. Mayor," Naofumi said.

"Please," Mayor Tanuki said, "We're not at a press conference. Call me Jin."

"Ok," Naofumi said, "So, Jin. What made you decide to allow a Private Police group into your town?"

"In short," Mayor Tanuki said, "I've seen the work your company does, and it's much better than the previous tactical team we had."

"Previous team," Naofumi asked.

"They're all in jail," Erhard said, "We discovered that the Captain was using his men off-the-books as a hit squad."

"Murders-for-hire with police training," Naofumi asked, "Forgive me if I say I don't enjoy that thought."

"We didn't," Erhard said, "All of them are facing life sentences."

"Hence the reason you want a Private Company in your town," Naofumi said, "With the establishment of the university, men like me are becoming almost a necessity."

"Exactly," Mayor Tanuki said.

The waitress then brought over their orders, "And here you are gentlemen," she said as she placed the orders in front of each of them.

"Looks fantastic," Naofumi said.

"The food here is excellent," Erhard said, "It's one of the places we bring our wives for anniversaries."

"You married, son," Mayor Tanuki asked.

"No, sir I'm not," Naofumi said.

"Girlfriend," Erhard asked.

"Not yet," Naofumi said, "I'm still looking."

"You'll find the right one," Mayor Tanuki said.

"Thank you, Jin," Naofumi said.

The taste of the steak was very soft and butter-like, and the sauce gave it a very nice break from the richness of the steak.

At the end of the night, as they were leaving, Naofumi noticed that the Escalade that had taken him from Castletown to Rock Valley was gone.

He then heard a chime on his phone, and when he pulled it out there was a text message saying, "I recalled the Escalade because you're right down the street from your apartment."

What was sent next was a location tab that was pointing right down the block.

As he was walking down the block, Naofumi found that most of the cars in town were run-of-the-mill family SUVs, some Mustangs, a few Corvettes, and he did see a BMW on the street.

As his phone dinged, he looked upwards to see a multi-story building that looked like Trump Tower mixed with the Sears Tower: golden front entrance with mirrored windows and four of the sides ended at different levels of elevation with a central spire sticking upwards.

As he walked into the building, the very-nicely dressed concierge looked up and said, "Good evening, can I help you?"

"Yes," Naofumi said as he walked up to the desk, "I'm the new Tenant. Naofumi Iwatani."

The concierge looked up Naofumi's name, and after a while, she looked back up, and said, "Why, yes sir," she reached behind the desk, and handed Naofumi a small key, "Twenty-first floor, room 2145."

"Thank you," Naofumi said as he slid the key onto his key ring, and walked over to the elevator.

As the elevator opened, an older couple stepped out to see Naofumi.

"Oh," the wife said, "Excuse me."

"Sorry," Naofumi said as he stepped to the side, letting them go past, and then into the elevator.

The floor of the twenty-first floor was all wooden boards laid sideways which gave it a nice pattern.

His apartment was in the corner of the building, to the right of the elevators. The main room of the apartment itself was very nicely decorated: leather chairs and couches, mahogany wood floors, a large, open kitchen, a glass dining table, and large windows which gave Naofumi a very nice view out onto the ocean and downtown.

The bathroom had very nicely-patterned white marble floors, a glass shower with a black marble privacy-shelf that would probably come just above Naofumi's waist, there was also a tub right next to it which was made of a black ceramic material, the cabinets were made of black marble, probably from the same slab as the privacy-shelf, and top-mounted glass sinks.

The floor of the bathroom was made of a dark, almost black wood, the bed was a grand king, the pillows were a tannish-brown color, the sheets were very dark green, almost black, and the bedspread was jade green. The headboard made of black leather and studded, and surrounding it was the same type of wood that the floors were made of. In front of the bed was a set of cabinets for his off-duty clothes, and possible for a few other things. Over to his right was a walk-in closet, and he knew there were a few possibilities for that.

He didn't have time to think on that right now, he had to get to sleep, it was a long day.

His nightclothes was a simple white tee-shirt, and a pair of boxer-briefs.

Lying back on the bed was a much welcome relief from what was going to happen tomorrow: his own unit, his own office, and possibly being yelled at by the mayor for not telling him that he had hired his daughter.

The bed was a far reach more comfortable than what he had back in Castletown and was probably a lot more comfortable than anything he was going to have.

Sleeping in his apartment, the sounds of the city were a welcome sound as opposed to the usual cannon fire that he would usually hear in his dreams which would be accompanied by flashbacks to his time in the Army.

The sound of the alarm on his phone going off was more than enough to rouse him from his sleep.

As he stood up, the floor was nice and cool, and leaving the comfort of his own bed was something he wasn't looking forward too.

However, the warm water from his shower was a very nice relief, and a fresh set of new clothes was exactly what he needed before walking out the door. His wardrobe choice: a pair of thick-soled boots, a pair of premium denim jeans, a thin white shirt, and a black polyester jacket that went four inches below his waist-line.

As he exited the elevator, the concierge looked up to see him, and asked, "Off to work?"

"Yes," Naofumi said, "Did my car arrive?"

"Yes it did," the concierge said as she reached behind the desk, and pulled out a set of keys, "Parking garage around the side."

Naofumi walked around to the parking garage, and using his key, he very quickly located his Equus BASS 770 which was painted Steve Green (very dark, almost black green), had a titanium mask, turn signals, window and door trim, and wheel finish. The interior leather was mostly Polar White with a black dash, floorboard, steering wheel, and rear shelf.

Sitting behind the wheel of his car made him feel alive again, the sound of the engine roaring to life sent a rush through his body.

The police station, right across from Town Hall was a large building that looked like the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California.

As he pulled up, he saw Chief Erhard standing outside waiting for him in full uniform, "This is unexpected," he said as Naofumi rolled down the window, "You can afford this?"

"Yes, sir," Naofumi said, "Want to head inside before the press conference?"

Chief Erhard walked around to the side door, stepped into the car, and the two of them drove around to the parking garage.

The elevator in the corner of the garage took them up to a floor that was completely empty, save for a single office that had a desk, and a computer.

"Welcome to the Brigade office," Erhard said, "Right now, this is a blank canvas. After training, you and your unit will customize it how you see fit."

"Training," Naofumi asked.

"These are your recruits," Erhard said, "You'll train them how you see fit, you'll come up with the primary goal of your brigade in this city, and you'll lead them."

"But I answer to you if the operation goes wrong," Naofumi said.

"Yes," Erhard said as he pointed to the office at the end of the room, "There's your office," he then pointed at Naofumi's uniform, "There's your uniform. Now go get dressed. The press conference is in half an hour."

The formal uniforms the HERO Brigade provides to their operatives is a pair of pants, a jacket, and a military officer-style hat.

Naofumi's pants had a series of dark-green stripes running up the side. The jacket had a button-up front with various borders that were the same shade of green, a high collar, and a small flap on the front that would cover the buttons. The military officer-style hat was fully black, rather than white, had the emblem of the brigade stamped in gold on the crest, and had a small strip of cotton the same shade of green running around the brim.

As he slid on the gloves and walked outside, he saw Erhard standing there, waiting for him.

"Not bad," he said as he walked up, and brushed a small amount of dust off the front of Naofumi's jacket.

"It's not complete," Naofumi said as he reached into his pocket, and pulled out a chrome-colored badge.

"Chrome badges," Erhard asked.

"Almost every police department in Melromarc uses brass badges," Naofumi said as he fastened the badge to his jacket, "It helps distinguish us from the rest."

"Fantastic," Erhard said as he and Naofumi took the elevator down to the main level.

"So when do I meet my recruits," Naofumi asked.

"After the conference," Erhard said, "Right now, they're sitting in the audience. They've been arranged to meet me and the mayor following the conference."

"Nice," Naofumi said, "Now tell me. Have you meet the mayor's daughter?"

"Yes," Erhard said, "Nice girl, and certainly a good cop/"

"She worked for you," Naofumi asked.

"Yes," Erhard said, "She was a patrol cop for two years before her mother was diagnosed with Stage 2B Pancreatic Cancer. She joined the Brigade to afford her procedures. Wonder whose recruit she'll end up being."

"You've met him," Naofumi said.

As the elevator opened, Erhard put his hand on Naofumi's chest to stop him, "You hired Raphtalia Tanuki for your team?"

"Yes," Naofumi said, "At the time I didn't know she was the mayor's daughter."

"Well you'll have to face that music later," Erhard said, "Thankfully for you, the fact that she's staying in her hometown might be the one thing that saves you from getting yelled at by her father."

"I'm her boss, not her boyfriend," Naofumi said.

"As far as the chief is concerned you're the one sending her into the line of fire," Erhard said, "He's not going to like someone sending his daughter into danger."

"I'm going to be protecting her from danger," Naofumi said, "I'm a sniper and a shield-specialist. I'll be in front of her, absorbing the damage."

"You do that," Erhard asked.

"I'm a Captain, not a General," Naofumi said, "I work for the Brigade, but I answer to you. You send us into danger, and I'll decide how we move."

"That's what I wanted to hear," Erhard said as they exited the elevator, and saw a large crowd gathered outside city hall where the Mayor was standing behind a podium, giving his speech.

"And it pleases me to announce, that the HERO Brigade has finally made it to our little town after the horrible debacle with our previous S.W.A.T. Team," Mayor Tanuki said, "Right now, a few notable recruits have been selected, and plans to train the new team is underway. But now, I would like you to help me welcome the head of our new team," he pointed at Naofumi and Erhard, "Captain Naofumi Iwatani."

The cameras and everyone at the conference turned around to see Naofumi and Chief Erhard standing at the top of the stairs, in front of the station, and applauded as Naofumi began his descent to the podium.

_Off to meet the town's press_…


	4. Training - Part 1

**Part 4 – Training – Part 1**

As Naofumi approached the podium, he put on the best smile he could as he approached the mayor to shake his hand.

As they shook, the two of them turned towards the audience as the press started snapping pictures of the two of them.

After that, the Mayor ushered toward the podium, and Naofumi smiled before turning toward the audience.

"Captain Iwatani," they all exclaimed, "Captain Iwatani!"

"Yes," Naofumi said as he pointed at the reporter closest to the stage.

The reporter stood up and asked, "Captain, due to the town's recent problems with our previous tactical team, how do you plan on improving the town's opinion on a team like yours?"

"My first plan is to hire trainees from the area," Naofumi said, "Right now, I have already selected two recruits that were born and raised in this town to help me grow the numbers of this team."

"Can you identify them," she asked.

"Unfortunately, not at this time," Naofumi said, "It is standard procedure for HERO Brigade trainees to not be officially welcomed in until they have passed their Commanding Officer's screening process. Next question."

"Captain Iwatani," they all exclaimed.

"Yes," Naofumi said as he pointed at the reporter on the edge of the center aisle.

The reporter stood up, and Naofumi noticed how nice the red dress she was wearing that came up just above her knees looked, "Captain," she began, "As I understand, you were part of the Castletown unit that took part in the STAR Tower raid two days ago. Is that correct?"

"Yes," Naofumi said.

"As I understand, two members of your former unit were LAPD S.W.A.T. and FBI Strategic Response Unit," the reporter asked, "Can you tell us a little bit of your former experience?"

"I was a sniper in the U.S. Army before joining the brigade," Naofumi said, "But I'm afraid that's all I can reveal."

"What were you some kind of Green Beret Special Operator," the reporter asked.

"I never tried out for the Green Berets," Naofumi said, "Wanted to, never did."

"Can you explain," the reporter asked.

"Just always busy," Naofumi said, "Next question?"

"Captain Iwatani," they all exclaimed.

"Yes," Naofumi said as he pointed to a reporter in the back.

The reporter was wearing a completely gray suit with thick-rimmed glasses, "Captain Iwatani, will there be a noticeable difference between the way the HERO Brigade operates as opposed to the way that the town's previous team operated," he asked, "And I have a follow up if I may?"

"As to your first question, yes," Naofumi said, "There will be a noticeable difference in the way the previous team operated, compared to mine. Your follow up?"

"Before that, would you allow me to ask how," the reporter asked.

"Yes," Naofumi said, "The town's previous team was a tactical team. The objective of my team will be to use violence as a last resort. Our training will be focusing on psychological evaluation, using different approaches to make sure no harm comes to the hostages or to any civilians, and to make sure that we can get the hostiles to stand down so we can give them a fair trial. Now, your follow up?"

"My follow up is, do you think your team being in town will help lower the number of violent crimes that this town is seeing more and more of?"

Naofumi's response was simply, "Yes."

Following the press conference, Naofumi walked back to his office and made a call to the main office back in Castletown.

"HERO Brigade, please identify," the operator said.

"This is Naofumi," he said, "I need to order some equipment."

"Go ahead," the operator said.

As Naofumi set about ordering his equipment, he looked up to see his two recruits entering the room. They were wearing black-leather military-style-boots, navy-blue tactical pants, and black shirts with the HERO Brigade logo printed on the front.

"Make sure that gets here by tomorrow," Naofumi said, "If you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to."

As he walked outside, he saw that the pictures that were included with the files didn't do Raphtalia justice: a face like a supermodel, curves that could have come from some sort of cartoon, and very luxurious, flowing red hair. She was unbelievably beautiful.

The man next to her, Fohl stood proud and poised like a soldier waiting to hear from his Commanding Officer.

Naofumi stood in front of the two of them, "Well," he said as he looked at Fohl, "Introduce yourself, Tiger."

Fohl went first, "Sir, Recruit Fohl Renaux," he said, "Former member of 5th Special Forces Group. Bomb disposal. Ready for duty, sir!"

"Well received," Naofumi said before looking at Raphtalia, "What about you, Beauty Queen?"

"Sir, Recruit Raphtalia Tanuki," Raphtalia said, "Former member of Rock Valley City Police. Ready for duty sir!"

"It's good to see that you two can take orders" Naofumi sad, "They trained you well. But this is not the Army or the Rock Valley Police. Right now, I don't know what you can do. It'll be up to you to show me. We don't have the go-ahead to start operating because we don't have a full team. You two show me you have what it takes to be in the Brigade, and the next choice of recruits is up to you."

"Sir," Fohl said, "How do we do that, sir?"

"You'll see," Naofumi said.

_One hour later_…

The Castle Valley Sheriff's Department Gun Range located twelve miles west of the city in a large open field.

So far they were the only people out there, and someone from the Brigade who obviously supplied the weapons.

"Captain," the man said as Naofumi walked up to him.

"Eric," Naofumi said before turning to Raphtalia and Fohl, "Recruits, this is Sergeant Eric Ramirez. One of Brigade's weapon masters," he then looked back at Eric, "You bring the stuff?"

"You know it," Eric said as he walked over to the table, and placed two weapon cases on top.

Naofumi unlocked the cases, and opened them to show off two M4 rifles, with M68 Aimpoint red dot sights, "Standard-issue for the brigade," he said as he picked up to magazines, and walked up to them, holding them upright, "You get one magazine, thirty rounds. You don't get to miss," he held them out like they were candy bars, and both Fohl and Raphtalia took them.

They walked up to the rifles, loaded them, and as they charged the guns, Naofumi walked up to them as they put on their ear protection and ballistic glasses.

As he put on his ear protection and glasses, Fohl spoke up, "Ready, sir!"

"Recruit Tanuki," Naofumi said, "Are you ready?"

"Yes sir," Raphtalia said.

"Good," Naofumi said, "Shoulder weapons," they aimed, "Commence firing," he hit the buzzer the range had to signal the range was hot.

"Firing," Fohl said.

As they began firing, Naofumi noticed that Raphtalia was shooting really close to the bullseye, meanwhile, Fohl was focusing on the critical kill areas.

Naofumi walked over to Fohl, "The rifle fires 5.56 rounds at 2900 feet-per-second, the projectile weighs sixty-two grains," he said, noticing that Fohl was keeping his eyes on the target, "What's that in meters, what's that in grams?"

"844 meters-per-second, and a little over four grams," Fohl said.

Naofumi simply nodded before he walked over to Raphtalia, "That gun is zeroed at one hundred yards, standard conditions at sea level," he said, "At further distances, the bullet begins to drop. What's the drop at two hundred yards?"

"3.8 inches at 200," Raphtalia said.

"Double the weight of the round," Naofumi said, "What's the drop?"

"3.8 inches," Raphtalia said, "The drop is constant, muzzle velocity isn't."

As they emptied their last rounds, Naofumi smiled, "Not bad," he said as he walked up to the targets before examining them, and after examining them, he pointed to Fohl's, "You have a profound understanding of kill spots. You were a designated marksman weren't you?"

"Yes sir," Fohl said.

Naofumi then walked over to Raphtalia, "You've been shooting for half your life haven't you, Beauty Queen," he asked.

"My father taught me, sir," Raphtalia said.

Naofumi reached into his pocket, pulled out two items, and handed them to the two of them, "Welcome to the Brigade," he said as Raphtalia and Fohl noticed that they were both hold the chrome-colored badge of HERO Brigade Officers.

"Thank you, Captain," Fohl said.

"All that's left is for you two to recruit another two," Naofumi said, "Then we have our team. Call up two people you know that have any kind of military or police training, and get them here, now."

"Now," Raphtalia asked.

"Now," Naofumi said, "We need a team, and we need it now. Get started."

Half an hour later, two cars pulled up, the first was a beautiful Caucasian woman with long, black hair about Raphtalia's height wearing a very tight-fitting shirt covered by a vest, a pencil skirt, right leggings, and low-height high-heels.

The second was another woman, about five-foot-two, long white hair with black strands, much similar to the hair that Fohl had, obviously her sister.

"Raphi," the black-haired woman said as she pranced up to Raphtalia, and hugged her tightly.

"Sade," Raphtalia said as she hugged her back.

"Hey bro," the white and black-haired girl said as she walked up to Fohl.

"Hey Atla," Fohl said.

Naofumi approached, and spoke up, "You two going to introduce me?"

"Captain Iwatani," Raphtalia said as she gestured to the girl she called, "This is Sadeena Smith. She was my partner in the Military Police and later in the department before she was kicked out for saving my life by shooting a suspect that the department deemed was not justified."

Naofumi walked up to her, she was sexy as hell, but she looked like a model rather than a cop.

He then looked over to the Fohl's sister, "This the sister you joined the army to pay for treatment for," he asked.

"Yes sir," Fohl said, "This is Alta Renaux, my little sister."

"What prior experience do you have," Naofumi asked.

"I volunteered with resource officers at several schools since I was twelve, and studied negotiation tactics with the FBI at Quantico," Alta said.

"How old are you," Naofumi asked.

"Nineteen," Alta said.

"Nineteen," Naofumi said, "And you've studied negotiating with the FBI?"

"She graduated college at sixteen," Fohl said, "She's a smart one."

"Can you fire a gun," Naofumi asked.

"Me and Fohl are the children of a former Marine," Alta said, "We've both grown up around guns, and I know how to fire a gun."

Naofumi then looked over at Sadeena, "And you, supermodel," he asked, "Can you fire a gun?"

"I was a top-ranked rifleman during my time at basic training," Sadeena said, "I earned numerous awards for it."

Naofumi turned his attention to the table where the rifles Raphtalia and Fohl just shot were located, "There are your guns then," he said as he gestured toward the table, "Thirty rounds, you don't get to miss."

Sadeena and Alta walked up to the firing line, and as they put on their ear and eye protection, Naofumi, Raphtalia, and Fohl did the same.

"Let's see how they do," Fohl said.

The two of them charged their weapons, and Naofumi spoke up, "Shoulder weapons," the charged the guns, and raised them to their shoulders, "Commence firing!"

Naofumi walked over to Sadeena, she had her selector on full-auto and was firing in bursts rather than holding down the trigger.

He then walked over to Alta, she had switched her selector to semi-auto.

Once the weapons locked open, Sadeena simply placed hers down while Alta ejected the magazine, and placed it on the table.

Naofumi and the others walked up to the targets, Sadeena's shots were inside the outline of the target, but everywhere, and Alta's shots were very closely grouped in the center, like her brother's.

"Not bad," Raphtalia said as she slapped Sadeena on the shoulder.

"Indeed," Naofumi said as he walked over to Sadeena's target, "You know how to stay on target, but you seem to just want to pull the trigger and get those rounds down range as fast as you can."

"It's what they taught us in the Army," Sadeena said.

"This isn't the Army," Naofumi said, "Can you learn to slow down?"

"Yes," Sadeena said.

"Ok," Naofumi said as he walked over to Alta's target, "Meanwhile, this side of the spectrum shows promise. Your father trained you and your brother didn't he?"

"Yes," Alta said.

"Good," Naofumi said before reaching into his pocket, and pulling out two more badges, "You're both in."

It was then that a large black Escelade pulled into the shooting range of the lot along with two Rock Valley PD officers on motorcycles.

"Here it comes," Raphtalia said.

The person that stepped out of the Escelade was none other than Raphtalia's father, Mayor Tanuki.

As he walked up to them, Mayor Tanuki looked at his daughter, and spoke, "Raphtalia."

"Hi daddy," Raphtalia said.

Mayor Tanuki then turned his attention to Noafumi, "When were you going to tell me you hired my daughter," he asked.

"When she passed requirements for the brigade," Naofumi said.

"And did she," Mayor Tanuki asked.

"Yes," Naofumi said.

"Then why didn't I hear from you," Mayor Tanuki asked.

"Because we just finished finding our other two members," Naofumi said.

"Indeed," Mayor Tanuki said as he looked at Fohl, Alta, and Saddeena, "Five members?"

"It's all we're going to need," Naofumi said.

"Is training over," Mayor Tanuki asked.

"For today," Naofumi said, "Yes. There'll be more tomorrow."

"Indeed," Mayor Tanuki sad, "You have more bullets so I can have a go with those rifles?"

Naofumi and Raphtalia looked at the mayor, and smiled, "You many do you want to fire?"

_More training is to come_…


	5. Training - Part 2

**Part 5 – Training – Part 2**

The day following Mayor Tanuki discovering his daughter would be joining the HERO Brigade in her own town, Naofumi decided now was the time to step up training: the killing house.

Using live ammo inside the killing house was out of the question because he wanted to make sure his team wasn't injured during the training exercises.

The first exercise was a house-clearing training round: go through the house, and clear out everyone that's hostile.

The training weapons: HK MP5s or Colt M4s loaded with rubber bullets.

As Fohl and Alta were clearing one room, Fohl noticed one of the targets was a hostage situation target, and fired.

But, as the sun was in his eyes, his shot was high and off-target.

Naofumi walked out to point at the bullet hole in the wooden frame of the target, "Not good enough, Tiger," he said.

After that, Raphtalia was clearing another room in the house with Sadeena, Sadeena was clearing the room when Raphtalia walked over to the closet before Naofumi walked out, pointing his hand like a gun in her face, "Bang," he said as he and Raphtalia walked back into the room, "Supermodel," Sadeena turned around to see Naofumi, "You're dead."

"That seemed a little unfair," Sadeena said as Fohl and Alta walked into the room.

"That's how it's going to be," Naofumi said, "The ones that commit the kind of crimes we're going to respond to have no respect for the rules, period. Remember that we're mercenaries with badges. We are bound by only one rule: Protect the innocent. This is a game, but when you lose at this game, you don't respawn at the last checkpoint. Which means you have to break the rules you were taught to abide by. Let's reset, and go again!"

_The next day_…

Raphtalia, Sadeena, Fohl, and Alta were out at target practice when Naofumi walked up to them, "Captain," Raphtalia said as she cleared her weapon, and turned around to look at Naofumi.

"Morning girls and boy," Naofumi said, "It seems we seem to be missing one team member."

"Sir," Raphtalia asked, "I thought we were all you hired?"

"You are," Naofumi said, "But there is one more member of the team that you all have yet to meet," he turned around as they heard the sound of a very large vehicle coming up the road, "And here he is now," what came around the corner was a Lenco BearCat G3 that was painted dark blue, he turned back to the team and motioned them to follow, "Come meet Grizzly."

The team followed Naofumi over to the BearCat, and as it stopped, the door opened, and Chief Erhard stepped out, "Captain," he said as he walked over to Naofumi.

"Chief Erhard," Naofumi said, "Thanks for driving it here."

"Anytime," Erhard said, "That was fun."

"Thanks," Naofumi said, "You don't mind if I have the stage do you?"

"Not at all," Erhard said.

Naofumi walked up to stand in front of the recruits, "Team," he said before pointing over his shoulder, "This is Grizzly, he's a Lenco BearCat G3, specially modified for our needs as a team. Come meet the big bastard."

Four doors, and one large set of swing-open doors at the back, armored glass, a giant side-step, and enormous rubber wheels that could probably take a puncture from getting stabbed with a Ka-bar knife.

"This is seriously cool," Fohl said.

"You know it, Tiger," Naofumi said as he walked to the front, and pounded his fist on the large steel barrier buster on the front, "Specially made Hydraulic RAM designed to knock down barriers," he then walked over to the door Erhard left open, "This bad boy is the real deal," he pounded on the side of the door three times which caused a very hard and solid sounding thump, "The armored plating has been modified, tough enough to stop anything up to a .458 magnum. The window can stop up to a .50AE bullet," he then opened the back door to point at the seats, "The seats were customized with hand-stitched leather, and the entire cabin is completely air-conditioned."

"This thing is fucking awesome," Raphtalia said.

"You're damn right it is," Naofumi said, "This way, please," he led the team around the back, but not before stopping at a small circular port on the side, "First, we have the gun ports," he then tried to rotate them with his hand, but they wouldn't budge, "The ports are hydraulically controlled, only those on the inside can open them. Let's keep moving," he then led the team to the back gate and after he opened the doors, the team saw a small equipment room.

"Sweet," Fohl said.

"Damn straight," Naofumi said as he jumped into the back, despite the headroom being slightly limited, he was still able to move around the back, as he pointed to a black trunk on the left side (his right) of the truck, "Extra clothes will be kept here," he gently tapped on the compartment over the trunk, "Helmets," he moved on to the one just above it, "Gas masks," he then moved onto the closet next to the trunk, "SMGS, rifles, shotguns," he touched the cabinet attached to the bottom right of the closet, "Extra ammo," the one on the bottom left, "Smoke, CS gas, flashbangs, and stingmore grenades."

"Question," Fohl said.

"Go ahead," Naofumi said.

"What kind of weapons will we be carrying," Fohl asked.

"Whatever you want to carry," Naofumi said, "If you want to bring a rapier, go ahead, but you are required to carry one primary weapon and one sidearm."

"Alright," Fohl said.

Naofumi then moved onto the desk on the opposite wall, "Computer that links directly back to HQ, the truck has its own independent Wi-Fi system," he said before pulling out one of the cabinets mounted to the desk the computer was resting on, and lifting up a Beretta GLX160, "Riot launcher," he closed the drawer, opened up the one above, and pulled out four grenades for the launcher, "Raphtalia, you were a weapon master in the military police, can you identify them, from left to right?"

Raphtalia pointed at the one that looked like an oversized shotgun shell, "The red one is a 40mm beanbag round," she said before pointing to the grenade that had a green shell, "The green one is a teargas cartridge," she pointed to the grenade that had a large white ring running around the black shell, "The tuxedo-colored one is a sound-grenade," she finally pointed at the last one, "I don't know what that one is."

"Of course you don't," Naofumi said as he picked the last one up, "This is a specialized piece of engineering that only we as members of the HERO Brigade have access to," the grenade looked like a large metal grenade that had been split into fours, with a drill-bit tip, "Allow me to introduce the AR6S," he pointed at the half-way point on the grenade, "Mounted inside here is a hi-definition camera that links back to the computer," he then pointed to the tip, "This tip is mounted to a cordless motor that can spin at 150 rotations per minute. You hit someone with this you'll put them through the worst pain they've ever experienced in their lives. But this is not meant to be shot at a person. You aim this at a wall, and shoot it, it'll go through the wall, to a point, and will give us a very good vantage point into the room. Intel is of paramount importance in any situation, hostage, or combat."

"Pretty awesome," Fohl said.

"Indeed," Naofumi said as he placed the grenades back in the cabinet, and tapped on the two other cabinets on the opposite side of the desk, "Suppressors, and cleaning supplies," he then pointed to the final cabinet opposite from the weapon cabinet, "Armor, shields, and Kevlar plates. Any questions?"

"We have extra uniforms in there," Sadeena said as she pointed at the uniform trunk, "What happens if we're not on duty, and Grizzly runs out of clothes when the call comes?"

"You'll carry extra equipment with you in your personal cars at all times," Naofumi said, "If you're still in personal clothes when you get to the AO, you'll change in Grizzly."

"What if we're in a delicate situation when the call comes in," Fohl asked.

"You'll tell them to keep cool until you get back," Naofumi said, the group chuckled a little bit before Naofumi retrieved a weapon case, and stepped down, "What do you say we get back to training?"

As they were walking back to the range, Raphtalia noticed the HERO Brigade symbol on the front of the case, "That your weapon," she asked.

"That's a yes," Naofumi said, "My main weapons are stored in this case, and I always keep them in a safe location."

"When do we choose our weapons," Raphtalia asked.

"Very soon," Naofumi said, "First we have to prove ourselves in front of the chief and your father."

"Prove what," Raphtalia asked.

"That I can lead you effectively, and that we can operate well as a team," Naofumi said as the approached the firing line.

As Naofumi opened the case, the first thing he pulled out was his 1911, "Nice," Raphtalia said before pointing at the gun, "May I?"

"Go ahead," Naofumi said.

Raphtalia picked up the pistol, and examined it, "Beveled mag well, extended slide release and safety, custom muzzle-break," she said before aiming downrange, and pulling the trigger, "Five-pound trigger-pull?"

"Six and a half," Naofumi said, "It needs to be light enough to deploy fast, but still strong enough to make sure it doesn't go off if dropped, and so it doesn't double-fire."

"Maybe I should get a piece like this," Raphtalia said.

"Help me prove this team can work with your father, and I'll buy it for you," Naofumi said.

"Deal," Raphtalia said, "What's left?"

"One of the main reasons so many people in Castletown are alive," Naofumi said as he pulled out his MRAD, "Meet Hawkeye."

"Very nice," Raphtalia said as she examined the rifle, the spitfire green color was a nice contrast against the black barrel, magazine, trigger, bolt, and the 'flying tigers' angry shark mouth paint job that stopped a the magazine well, ".338 Lapua?"

"You know it," Naofumi said, "My friend here can knock the bullseye out of a target at a mile and a half."

"You can do that," Raphtalia asked, a hint of doubt in her voice.

"What? You don't believe me," Naofumi asked.

"It just seems a little like an impossible shot," Raphtalia said, "If you can do that, then I want to see it."

"Indeed," Naofumi said as he reached into the case, and pulled out a large scope which he handed to Raphtalia, "Let me show you."

After lowering the bipod, he slid the second scope he pulled out of his case onto the top rail and pulled out a magazine to begin loading it.

"Let's see what you can do, Captain," Raphtalia said as she looked downrange at the target that was the farthest out from the seat.

Naofumi simply took one bullet, placed it into the chamber, and closed the bolt, "You're gonna get a kick out of this," he said.

Naofumi adjusted the scope, steadied his breathing, and as he pulled the trigger, Raphtalia could feel the shockwave from the muzzle as the bullet shot out the end, and punched the bullseye out of the target like he was using a hole-punch.

"Damn," Raphtalia said, "Bang-on-the-money."

"You were saying," Naofumi asked as he opened the bolt, and turned toward Raphtalia.

"I will never doubt you again," Raphtalia said as she handed the scope back to him.

"Good," Naofumi said, "What do you say we get back to target practice?"

"You got it," Raphtalia said as she picked up the MP5 she was training with.

As Raphtalia was shooting with her MP5, Naofumi couldn't help but admire a little: she had a picture-perfect stance that accentuated her curves, her hair and body bouncing with every pull of the trigger, and her shots were always on target. She looked like one of those army pin-up posters that he would hang on the wall of his barrack when he was stationed in Jalalabad, Afghanistan as the CO of the… Forget what I just said…

_See you in the next chapter_…


	6. Training - Part 3

**Part 6 – Training – Part 3**

The next day, it was time for another run at the killing house, this time with Naofumi leading the team.

As they arrived on the training ground, the team noticed Naofumi retrieving a custom riot-shield from Grizzly.

"What is that," Fohl asked as he loaded the magazines on his vest.

"This is how I've stayed alive in this job," Naofumi said as he slide the cartridges into the slots on his shield, "A custom-made level IV ballistic riot shield made with overlapping layers of titanium and Kevlar."

"And these," Raphtalia asked as she pointed at the slots below the large light.

"Specially-made cartridges," Naofumi said as he pointed to the line of cartridges on the bottom row, "Stingmore charges, each individual charge has one hundred bb-sized hard-rubber balls in them that can shoot out faster than most handguns," he then pointed to the middle row, and pressed down on the button that was on the shield's grip, causing the taser cartridges to emit blue electric sparks, "Taser cartridges, each individual cartridge carries two tasers, and there are six cartridges in all."

"Twelve tasers," Raphtalia asked.

"Yep," Naofumi said before pointing at the light, "And I don't think I have to tell you what this is, do I?"

"A stun light," Fohl said, "You hit that, and whoever's in front is temporarily blinded."

"And bingo was his name-o," Naofumi said before pointing at Fohl, then turning to the team, "Team! Fall in!"

The team gathered around the side of Grizzly that Naofumi had tapped the plans for the shooting house to the side of, "What's the scenario," Fohl asked.

"Classic 'robbery-gone-wrong' hostage situation," Naofumi said, "A small crew of thieves break into a house under the assumption the homeowners aren't here. The homeowners are home, the police came, and negotiations aren't going well."

"Any news on the x-rays," Raphtalia asked.

"Three of them," Naofumi said, "Two pistols, one pump-action confirmed. First order of business is?"

"Intel," Raphtalia said, "We get one of those AR6S's in the wall, we can determine where the hostages are, or where the hostiles are."

"Good job," Naofumi said before he pointed at the map, "Anyone want to know where we should shoot the charge?"

Fohl pointed at the 'living room', "Right here," he said, "Assuming these are common criminals, we could safely say a few of them are here."

"Can you say for sure," Naofumi asked.

"Well, we can assume," Fohl said.

"There's where your theory falls flat," Naofumi said, "You don't make any assumptions when you're in the field, especially when there's a hostage situation like this. You make one assumption, and you're wrong, the hostage dies."

"Then what about here," Raphtalia asked as she pointed to the 'kitchen', "It's an open kitchen, and has a direct line of sight into the living room."

"Anywhere else," Naofumi asked.

"What about here," Fohl said as he pointed at the upstairs hallway, "We go in through the font, someone's going to go out into the hallway, and we could catch them."

"That's more like it Tiger," Naofumi said, "Now who's manning the launcher?"

"I'll do it," Sadeena said.

"You used them in the Military Police," Naofumi asked.

"And later as a street cop," Sadeena said.

"Who in their right mind would give a street cop a grenade launcher," Naofumi asked.

"The Chief," Raphtalia said, "He saw that she used them time and time again in the MP, and he issued her one."

"Ok then," Naofumi said as he walked around to the back of the truck, and handed Sadeena the launcher, "You get two shots. Don't miss."

"When have I," Sadeena asked.

"The shooting range," Naofumi said.

"Ok, ok," Sadeena said, "Good point."

"Alright," Naofumi said before pointing at Raphtalia, "Beauty Queen, take Little Sis, and go around the back," he then turned to Sadeena and Fohl, "Supermodel, Tiger, you're with me. We go in the front."

"You're going in with us," Fohl asked.

"If need-be," Naofumi said, "I will be one of the first through the door. When the situation doesn't need it, I'll be either in the control center, or far away with my rifle."

"Then let's see what you can do with that shield," Fohl said.

"You'll see what I can do with this shield," Naofumi said as he drew his 1911, and switched the safety off, "Supermodel, take aim."

Sadeena loaded the launcher, and as she aimed it at the house, "Firing," she said as she pulled the trigger.

The grenade exited the launcher with a sudden "POOF", and when it attached to the wall, it was pretty obvious where it landed because you could see the four sides flattened against the wall.

Naofumi fished a small device out of his pocket, and as he turned it on, the feed from the camera mounted inside the grenade displayed an image of the living room.

He then reached up to his headset, and spoke, "Two tangos holding three Bravos in One-Charlie," he then motioned to the second floor, "Get the roof."

Sadeena reloaded the launcher, aimed toward the roof, and with a single pull, the grenade stuck right over the top-floor hallway, "Stuck," Sadeena said.

"Good," Naofumi said as he looked down at the device, "Nothing so far," he then moved up to the door, "All teams, standby for my go," as he steadied himself by the door, "Standby," he then moved to break down the door, "GO!"

Naofumi threw his shoulder into the door, and was followed by Fohl and Sadeena who each threw a flash-bang into the house's living room.

Raphtalia and Alta then charged in the back door, and as they did, a pop-up target of a hostile came out from behind the stairs.

Raphtalia reacted first, and put two bullets in the target's head.

"X-ray down," Raphtalia said.

Naofumi, Fohl, and Sadeena then moved into the living room where the two pop-up targets came out from behind the couch.

Naofumi quickly switched to his stingmore launcher, and fired.

You could see the pellets in the targets, that was before Fohl and Sadeena opened fire.

"Three x-rays down," Naofumi said, "Tiger, Beauty Queen, with me. Supermodel, Little Sis, secure them."

Naofumi led Fohl and Raphtalia towards the kitchen where a single target popped up: a young child, "Hostage," Raphtalia said.

"Keep moving," Naofumi said.

They cleared the rest of the first floor before arriving back in the living room, and Fohl spoke, "First floor secure."

Naofumi checked the camera-monitor, and saw a single hostile target moving from one side of the upstairs hallway to the other, "Second floor, move up," Naofumi said.

Naofumi walked up the stairs, followed by the team who kept their weapons pointed directly above their commander.

Rule is when you're walking behind a riot shield you aim high above the shield-bearer, otherwise you risk rebounding the bullet off the back of the shield into the bearer.

As they reached the top of the stairs, Naofumi gestured for the team to check the rooms.

Fohl checked the first bedroom, clear. Up next was Sadeena, clear. Alta & Raphtalia were checking the master bedroom and bathroom, clear.

Naofumi then walked up to the door he saw the hostile walk into, "Alright," he said as the team walked up to the room, "Now's the time for an important lesson, wait here," Naofumi walked into the room, and two minutes later walked out, "Here we go," he then kicked the door down, and walked in with his team behind him.

"Clear," Raphtalia said.

"Or is it," Naofumi said as he put his shield down by the door, and walked over to the wall, and leaned against it, "The final x-ray is somewhere in this room. You have ten seconds to find him or we start again, three, two, one, start searching," the team began looking around the room, Fohl and Sadeena instantly walked over to the closet, "Eight seconds," they threw the doors open: nothing, "Six seconds," Alta ran over to the wardrobe, "Five seconds," as she opened the door, there was nothing, "Four," Raphtalia ran over to the bed, and as she threw back the mattress to see the target, someone fired three rounds.

Raphtalia threw the covers down, aimed at the mattress, and emptied her magazine.

Fohl, Sadeena, and Alta turned around to do the same, leaving the mattress as just a bunch of hanging springs, feathers, and fabric.

As they stopped, Raphtalia pushed the mattress aside, and there was the last x-ray, the target was full of holes, but there was no indication that there was any kind of explosive device inside the target. So where did the gunshots come from.

The answer came when they heard a click from Naofumi's direction, and saw him unloading his 1911, to slide a freshly-ejected round back into the clip. There were three spent shell casings by his feet.

"That was you," Fohl asked.

"Damn straight," Naofumi said as he holstered his 1911, "What we go through is guerrilla warfare," he pointed at Raphtalia, "Beauty Queen, extra points for thinking outside the box and for fast reflexes."

"She's a good one," Sadeena said as she slapped Raphtalia on the back.

"Indeed," Naofumi said, "Remember what I told you the other day. Whoever we're going to face isn't going to play by the rules. Whatever they want is worth dying for, that's why they brought guns. These guys came because they wanted to rob this family blind. The next person you come up against will probably have broken into this place with the intent to injure or kill the family. You job as soldiers is to make sure the innocent come home safely. My job as your Commanding Officer is to make sure you go home, but that doesn't mean the way you came. If you go home with one bullet wound, be thankful it wasn't a kill-shot," Naofumi undid his vest, and pulled his shirt down to reveal a large, ugly mark on his right collarbone, "My pain, your lesson."

"Good shit," Fohl said.

"Indeed," Naofumi said, "My first round with the Brigade: we were called into to a situation much like this one. We cleared the first floor no problem. Then we move onto the second floor: asshole was hiding underneath the bed with a PM-63 Submachine gun. As soon as I pulled the covers back, he hit me square in the collar bone because I wasn't holding my shield high enough," he then angled his arm so it was drawing a line from his collarbone to his head, "Another six inches this way," he then drew a line from his collar bone to his heart, "Or a foot this way, and I would have died that day. I went into surgery once we got off duty, and I was back at work the next day. The bullet skipped off the top of my collarbone, and went out the back, somehow it missed everything important. You might get awards from the brigade when you do something amazing, but these are the only trophies you can be proud off. Taking a 9mm round from and old Russian SMG hurt worse than the time my girlfriend dumped me at prom for the head of the football team," the entire team snickered, "But it didn't kill me. Always be prepared, and don't be afraid to take a bullet. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. Never forget that."

As the team arrived back at the HQ, Naofumi walked over to see that the workers from the Brigade who were delivering their exercise equipment.

"Captain, sir," one of them said as he walked up to Naofumi with a clipboard, "Sigh here please."

As Naofumi put his John Doe on the line, Fohl walked up to him, "What's all this," he asked.

"Our daily equipment," Naofumi said as he handed the clipboard back to the equipment masters, and turned toward Fohl, "We get here at six A.M. on the nose, and we exercise until eight, or until we get a call. We stay in shape, or we shape out."

"Very good, sir," Fohl said.

"Indeed," Naofumi said before turning his attention to Raphtalia, "Beauty Queen, my office please."

As Raphtalia walked up to Naofumi, he held the door for her, walked in, and stood at attention in front of Naofumi's desk, "You wanted to see me," she said as Naofumi closed the door.

"Yes," Naofumi said before seeing how stiff she was, "At ease, you might sprain something."

"Thank you, sir," Raphtalia said, "Did I do something wrong?"

"No," Naofumi said, "You've done exceptionally well. Perhaps a little too well for an officer."

"Sir," Raphtalia asked.

"I've been looking for an XO," Naofumi said, "And something is telling me that it has to be you, or it's no one else."

"Sir," Raphtalia asked as she looked at Naofumi.

"You heard me," Naofumi said as he picked up a set of metal Sergeant Bars, "These are yours' now, Sergeant Tanuki."

Raphtalia smiled what was perhaps the most beautiful smile Naofumi had ever seen.

_Next chapter will be the last training chapter, I promise_…


	7. Training - Part 4

**Part 7 – Training – Part 4**

The day after Naofumi promoted Raphtalia to Sergeant, the team gathered at the city's decommissioned Airforce base, the city's police were busy at work on a decommissioned Boeing 747.

"Alright team," Naofumi said as the team gathered next to Grizzly, "This is it," he pointed at the airplane, "The Chief of Police and the Mayor are up there, and we have to prove ourselves."

"What's the situation," Raphtalia asked.

"Three city police posing as terrorists armed with handguns," Naofumi said, "Multiple different officers posing as hostages. They're demanding that the Governor release a number of their imprisoned comrades held in the country's jails and give them fuel. The Governor made it clear that she won't negotiate with terrorists. The deadline for delivering their men expires in half-an-hour, and they've threatened to kill one hostage every five minutes their demands are not met. So, they called us in."

"So, we have half-an-hour to come up with a plan," Fohl asked.

"Yep," Naofumi said, "Since this was a politically-charged simulation, they want me to coordinate efforts," he then looked over at Raphtalia, "Sergeant, you're gonna led this one."

"Ok then," Raphtalia said as she walked up to the plans, "We'll enter here," she pointed at the legs, "Every plane has an under-carriage for baggage, and there are multiple entrances into the plane itself."

"There are four of you, and three of them," Naofumi said, "But don't forget what I taught you yesterday."

"You make an assumption, and a hostage could die," Fohl said as he looked at the plans before pointing at a small alcove in the center of the plan, "What about here?"

"What's that," Raphtalia asked.

"It's a small hatch that the stewardesses use to bring up the food carts that are loaded onto the planes before they take off," Fohl said.

"Looks small," Naofumi said, "Think you could fit through there?"

"Me," Fohl asked, "No," he then turned to look at his sister.

"You want your sister to go in there," Naofumi asked.

"She's the only one that can fit in there," Fohl said, "Plus, they don't know about this, so how could she be in danger?"

"Ok then," Naofumi said, "You guys ready?"

"Ready," Raphtalia said.

"Ready," Fohl said.

"Ready," Sadeena said.

"Ready," Alta said.

"Ok then," Naofumi said, "Get your guns and get in Grizzly. Beauty Queen, you're driving."

As Naofumi walked up to the airplane, he saw Chief Erhard and Mayor Tanuki standing at the top of the stairs waiting for him.

"Captain," Chief Erhard said, "Your team ready?"

"You know it," Naofumi said as he followed them into the observation post.

"Ok," Mayor Tanuki said, "Shall we begin?"

"Looks like negotiations have failed," Chief Erhard said.

Naofumi picked up his radio, "Here we go," he said as he hit the _talk_ button, "Team, sound off."

"Ready," Raphtalia said.

"Ready," Fohl said.

"Ready," Sadeena said.

"Ready," Alta said.

"Ok," Naofumi said, "In three, two, one, hammer down," the clock instantly started ticking down.

Raphtalia started up Grizzly and drove right up toward the back of the plane.

Most tactical teams roll up from the rear of the plane because there are no windows that way, and there is no way to see who's approaching.

As the team exited Grizzly, Raphtalia took point, the team marched up to the wheels and very quickly climbed inside.

Luckily the floor above was soundproof, otherwise, they could have been turned into Swiss cheese if not and this was a real situation.

"How'd you know about this," Sadeena asked as Fohl walked up to the lift, and pulled the door open for his sister.

"I've known a few flight attendants," Fohl said as he ushered Alta inside.

"Just a few," Sadeena asked.

As she entered, Sadeena and Fohl walked up to the hatch that opened up to the front area of the plane, near the observation post.

Raphtalia meanwhile chose the area near the bathroom. The sink in an airplane is held into place with a very strong acrylic-based binding agent.

Luckily, the Brigade had a way around that: a compressed aerosol canister filled with liquid nitrogen.

A pair of heavy-duty rubber gloves and a thin directional straw was more than enough for Raphtalia to freeze the binder and pop the counter off.

As she stepped out, Fohl and Sadeena were checking the entrance to the main cabin: nothing.

Fohl gently lifted the hatch which allowed Naofumi, Erhard, and Mayor Tanuki to see him climb out, and extend a hand to Sadeena who accepted it when she climbed out herself.

"Beauty Queen, ready," Raphtalia said.

"Little Sis, ready," Alta said.

"Tiger and Supermodel, ready," Fohl said.

"On my count," Naofumi said, "In five, four, three, two, one… execute."

Fohl and Sadeena came around the corner, and one of the cops dressed as hostiles turned around to see Fohl raise his MP5, and fire twice: two shots in the chest.

The third turned and saw Sadeena drill him three times in the torso.

The last one walked up toward the front, only to be tripped by someone's leg, and as he went to stand up, he was hit twice in the back with a pistol.

"Two tangos down in One-Alpha," Fohl said.

"One tango down in Two-Alpha," Alta said.

"Come on," Naofumi said, "There's one more. There's a sleeper."

The final tango, disguised as a civilian stood up with a cop-issued Glock 19 and aimed at Alta, only to be shot twice in the side.

He looked over and saw Raphtalia standing there holding her MP5, then smiled.

"One tango down in Three-Alpha," Beauty Queen said.

Naofumi looked down as Erhard stopped the clock: 12 minutes, and 18 seconds.

"That's a new record," Erhard said.

"So, Mr. Mayor," Naofumi said as he turned toward Mayor Tanuki, "We allowed to operate here?"

Mayor Tanuki walked over to the table inside the observation post, opened his briefcase, and after signing one piece of paper, he walked back over to Naofumi and held it out to him.

Naofumi looked down at the paper, and it was a 25-million-dollar contract for five years.

"Congratulations, Captain," Mayor Tanuki said as he held his hand which Naofumi shook, "You earned it."

"No," Naofumi said as he turned his attention to the team, "We did it," he held up the contract which caused them to cheer.

After the team left the plane, Fohl turned to Naofumi and asked, "So what's on the agenda now, boss?"

"Now, we get you strapped," Naofumi said, "I need you four carrying around weapons that suit your status as Brigade operators."

"I know just the place," Raphtalia said.

The team climbed into Grizzly, and Naofumi looked back at his team, "Buckle in," he said, "We're not on call, and we still have to abide by traffic laws."

The shop was about two miles from downtown, on one of the town's busiest streets.

As they pulled up (if you were inside), you'd see the owner's face just light up.

As they walked in, they saw a young woman in her early twenties with strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes standing behind the counter.

"Welcome to Seaetto Arms," she said before seeing Raphtalia, "Raph!"

"Hello Eclair," Raphtalia said as she walked up to her, and hugged her over the counter.

"What are you doing here," Eclair asked.

"We just won the contract to be the town's tactical team," Raphtalia said.

"That's great," Eclair said, "So this is your team?"

"That's right," Raphtalia said before turning toward her team, and pointing at Sadeena, then the other members of the team, "You know her, those two are Fohl and Alta," she finally pointed to Naofumi, "And that's our Captain, Naofumi Iwatani."

"Welcome to my shop," Eclair said, "So what are we doing today?"

"We need some service arms," Naofumi said.

"Pistols," Eclair said, "Nice," she then ushered the team over to the display case where she kept the pistols, "Take your pick, we have a range in the back you can use."

Fohl was the first to walk up to the counter to check the weapons underneath the glass.

"Let me take a look at this USP," Fohl said.

As Eclair was pulling out the USP, Alta pointed at a small Glock, "What is that one," she asked.

"That's a Glock 26 I just got in," Eclair said, "Never been fired before."

"I'll try that," Alta said.

Sadeena walked up to the case, and pointed at an S&W pistol, "That M&P," she asked.

"Your turn, beauty queen," Naofumi said.

"No need," Eclair said, "I have something special that I've been saving just for her," Eclair went behind the counter, and pulled out a special case.

"Is that," Raphtalia asked.

Eclair opened the case to reveal a military-standard Beretta M9A3 with custom medallions imprinted into the grips.

The one on the right was a katana, and the one on the left was of her initials.

"Not bad," Naofumi said, "Issued side-arm?"

"It was a leftover after they moved to the M18," Raphtalia said.

"Ok then," Naofumi said, "Time to decide on customizations. Go crazy!"

_That night_…

In celebration of the team becoming the town's tactical unit, Raphtalia suggested that the team go out at a local restaurant that she and Sadeena knew very well.

"So, your dad owned this place," Sadeena asked as Fohl sat across the table from her.

"Yea," Fohl said as he pointed at a picture just behind her showing a picture of him, Alta, his father, and mother standing in front of the restaurant when it was new.

"Wow, you were cute when you this place opened," Sadeena asked.

"Were cute," Fohl said, "Who's to say I'm not still cute?"

"I do," Alta said.

The team started breaking up laughing as Fohl and Alta's mother walked up to the table, "Won't you two ever get along," she asked.

"Hey mom," Fohl said.

"Aren't you going to introduce me," Lucia asked.

"Mom," Fohl said, "These are the members of Rock Valley's new tactical team, me and Alta's team. This is, Sadeena, our Sergeant, Raphtalia, and our Captain, Naofumi."

"So good to meet you," Lucia said as she shook all of their hands, before turning toward the back, "Johnny! Get your butt up here and take their orders!"

"So, tell me, boss, how did we do on the simulation," Fohl asked.

"You got us the contract, and no one went home injured," Naofumi said, "In this industry that's the equivalent of striking oil. As far as the coordinated effort, though, it was beyond textbook. However, that was just a simulation, and we were using standard armaments. Tomorrow you're going to be training on different weapon systems so I know what to issue you. So, if one of you ends up with a shotgun, make sure you know what you're loading in the magazine, or the hostage might not live to tell the tale. But you did good, so let's celebrate, because tomorrow, we're the city's SWAT team."

After ordering, Naofumi stood up, and walked over to the old-style jukebox, and dropped about two dollars and fifty cents into the machine, and choose a few songs.

The song he primarily choose was old-school rock and roll music, "You like classic rock," was the first question out of Raphtalia's mouth.

"I love classic rock," Naofumi said, "It was the only thing that me and my father could bond over when I was a child."

"Favorite band," Fohl asked.

"When I was a kid," Naofumi asked, "KISS, all day long."

"Same here," Fohl said as he held out his hand to Naofumi who bumped it with his own.

"Right on," Naofumi said.

"I have to say, I enjoyed some of their earlier stuff," Raphtalia said, "But I think I like AC/DC a little bit more."

"Wow," Naofumi said, "Not my absolute first choice, but still awesome."

"I have to say one of my favorites was Aerosmith," Alta said.

"Dude," Naofumi said as he gave Fohl a small knuckle-tap on the shoulder, "Your sister's got good taste in music."

"I know," Fohl said, "I spent most of my life hearing that first hand."

"What was your favorite growing up," Sadeena asked.

"Bon Jovi," Fohl said.

The team let out a slight chuckle, "Not a bad choice, but still a little funny," Naofumi said, "You don't really look like a Bon Jovi fan."

"I know," Fohl said.

_Well, I'm going to make like a cowboy on a steel horse I ride, and blaze my way out of here, onto the next chapter, keep it real my friends_…


End file.
